Forever Is A Bloody Long Time
by Your Angel of Music
Summary: Forever. It wasn't something Jack had ever asked for. It wasn't something he'd ever wanted. And it definitely wasn't something he wanted for anyone else. But, as Jack knows all too well, we very rarely get what we want.


**Title**: Forever Is A Bloody Long Time  
**Characters:** Jack Harkness, Ianto Jones (Mentioned: Rhiannon Davies)  
**Pairings:** Jack/Ianto  
**Rating**/**Warnings****:** PG-13  
**Spoilers:** None  
**Summary:** Forever. It wasn't something Jack had ever asked for. And it definitely wasn't something he wanted for anyone else. Especially not for Ianto Jones.

**A/N:** This was written for the Jack/Ianto Last Author Standing Community: Round One - Challenge Three. The challenge was to write a fiction, between 100 and 1000 words, using the prompt: "Terrible Gift".

**Extra Notes**: AU (takes place between Exit Wounds and Children of Earth)

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**Forever Is A Bloody Long Time**

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The light of the moon caught the surface of the water, shimmering through the gentle ripples and casting a dim light across the figure of the young man. As Jack approached, he could just about see the whiteness of his knuckles as he gripped the railing and the slight trembling of his legs as they balanced his weight.

"I could jump, you know."

There was a dullness to his voice that Jack hadn't heard in a very long time; a numbness that echoed through the deep timbre, curling around the vowels and crushing them beneath its weight. He took a quiet breath, the sound snatched away by the wind as he took another step forward.

"You shouldn't do that."

"Why not?" he half expected Ianto to whip around to face him, to catch him in the glare of his eyes (he briefly wondered whether they'd be grey or blue today); but he stayed motionless, eyes fixed on the blackened blanket of water. "It wouldn't make any difference."

"But it'll hurt," Jack took hold of the railing, swinging himself up and over until he was sat precariously beside the young man. "Trust me. It's not a nice way to go."

Ianto's cheek twitched, the slight movement captured in the spotlight of the moon.

"I don't think I could feel it even if it did hurt," suddenly his eyes flicked upwards, fixing Jack with a stare that was part way between accusation and desperation. "Is this what it's like, then? An eternity of nothing - of feeling _nothing_?"

Jack swallowed, suddenly painfully aware of those eyes (grey – today they were definitely grey) searching his face; reading every movement, every twitch, every muscle. He could feel letters, maybe words, drifting through his brain, but he had no way of catching them and bringing them together. Eventually, much to his guilty relief, Ianto dropped his gaze back to the rippling sea.

"I have a trust fund set up," Jack wasn't sure whether Ianto was talking to him, to himself or perhaps even to the sea; but he listened anyway. "Every time I get paid, half of my wages are redirected into it, so that when I…when I die…I have something to give them. There's so much money in it. Now what do I do with it?"

Something shimmered in the corner of Ianto's eye, a glossy film spreading outwards across his iris.

"This isn't the way it was meant to happen," his lips thinned to a tight, white line, his voice catching momentarily in his throat. "I die and I leave them money, that's the way it works. My sister, her kids – I'd be able to give them something. I was ready for that. I expected that. But now, I don't even…"

He swayed slightly on his perch his head dropped to his chest. Jack's hand shot out to rest on his shoulder, gently nudging with his palm until Ianto's weight was balanced once more.

"You can still give it to them. You can."

"How?" Ianto looked up at him, his face painfully tight. "They won't take it. She's too proud. Me dying was the only way they could get it. That's why it was supposed to happen. I was fine with it. It was all planned out. Die young, give them a better life; die young, before you could get bored with me. I wanted it, Jack. I don't want _this_."

Jack shifted closer, wrapping his free arm tentatively around Ianto's shoulders so that he could splay his fingers out on the quietly heaving chest. The movement was slightly awkward and far too sentimental - but Ianto didn't fight it. Not this time. And that broke Jack's heart a little bit.

"I didn't either," he tried not to be distracted by the newly-eternal cadence beating beneath his palm. "I didn't want it and I didn't want it for you. I didn't want to give this…this _thing_…to you. But you heard the Doctor: circumstances colliding, chances and destiny and all that other crap - it happened and he can't fix it. We rarely get what we want. It's what we do with what we actually get that counts."

He slid his arm suddenly away from Ianto's shoulders, catching Ianto off guard as he swung around and hopped back down to the floor. The younger man watched him, a flicker of curiosity lighting up his eyes – restoring a little blue amongst the grey. Turning back once he'd regained his balance, Jack held out a firm, yet beckoning hand, as if he were coaxing a child towards him.

"We have to make the best of it. It's the only thing we can do. It's a lot easier when you've got someone else to make the best of it with."

Ianto's eyes bore penetrating holes into Jack's palm, his body twitching slightly as his mind fought between the water and Jack.

"Forever, Jack," he said finally, fear darting from his eyes as he tested the word on his tongue. "_Forever_. Forever's a bloody long time. We'll end up hating each other."

"Maybe," Jack shrugged, his heart lifting as Ianto twisted his body and took a firm hold of his hand. "Maybe not. The only thing we can do is wait and see. Otherwise we'll never know."

With a gentle _thud_, Ianto landed beside him, quickly dropping his hand and turning so that they were both staring out across the Bay. A flicker of orange shimmered on the horizon, the dawn light creeping towards them; banishing the moonlight from the rippling waves.

As the light began to brush against their feet, Ianto looked across at Jack, a tiny smile twitching at the corners of his lips.

"Coffee?"

Jack grinned back, releasing a relieved sigh as the tension evaporated from his shoulders.

"Ianto Jones - you are a marvel."

Ianto just shrugged, a resigned sadness tingeing his smile.

"I'm an impossible thing. And don't you forget it."

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**Fin**

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_There were a lot of immortal!Ianto fics for this round - but they were all very different. So this was my offering. It came third in the round to two amazing pieces which should both be read immediately as they were fantastic. I am thoroughly enjoying this challenge and I hope I can stay in for at least a few more rounds. _

_Thanks for reading!_


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